By Vibhu Mishra
14 March
2025
UN aid
efforts are in jeopardy following funding reductions
announced by major donors, including the United States and
several European nations.
Mr. Guterres
described
Cox’s Bazar as “ground zero” for the impact of these
cuts, warning of a looming humanitarian disaster if
immediate action is not taken.
“We are at risk of
cutting the food rations in this camp,” he
said.
“That would be an unmitigated disaster
that we cannot accept because people will suffer and even
people will die.”
A mission of
solidarity
Mr. Guterres emphasised that his
visit, which took place during the holy month of Ramadan,
was a
mission of solidarity with the Rohingya refugees and the
Bangladeshi people who generously host
them.
“I am here to shine a global spotlight
on the plight – but also the potential – of Rohingya
refugees,” he said.
“The more than one
million Rohingya refugees here are proud. They are
resilient. And they need the world’s support.”
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He
praised the support offered by Bangladesh and local
communities who have shared their land, forests, water and
resources with the refugees, calling it nothing short of
“enormous.”
Bangladesh is hosting over one
million Rohingya refugees who fled violence in
neighbouring Myanmar. The largest exodus followed brutal
attacks by Myanmar security forces in 2017, a series of
events that the then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights,
Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein described as “textbook
example of ethnic cleansing.”
World
cannot turn its back
The Secretary-General
emphasised that the international community cannot turn its
back on the Rohingya crisis.
“We cannot
accept that the international community forgets about the
Rohingyas,” he said, adding that he will “speak
loudly” to world leaders that more support is urgently
needed.
“It is essential that the international
community does everything to make sure that peace is
reestablished in Myanmar and that the rights of the
Rohingyas are respected, that discrimination and persecution
like the one we have witnessed in the past, will
end.”
He stressed that the solution to the
crisis “must be found in
Myanmar.”
“We will not give up
until conditions allow for the voluntary, safe and
sustainable return for all refugees
here.”
Frontlines of climate
change
Mr. Guterres also highlighted the dire
conditions in the camps, worsened by climate
change.
“These camps – and the communities
that host them – are on the frontlines of the climate
crisis. Summers are scorching, and the chance of
fires skyrocket. In the cyclone and monsoon seasons, floods
and dangerous landslides destroy homes and lives,” he
said.
Beyond immediate aid, he stressed the need for
education, skills training and opportunities for the
refugees, warning that many families feel they have no
option but to risk perilous sea journeys in search of a
better future.
Iftar with
refugees
Mr. Guterres ended his visit to
Cox’s Bazar by participating in an Iftar meal with
Rohingya refugees.
“Fasting and having an Iftar
together with you are proof of my deep respect for your
religion and your culture,” he said.
“This
is the holy month of Ramadan, the month of solidarity. It
would be unacceptable that in the month of solidarity, the
international community would reduce the support to the
Rohingyas in Bangladesh,” he added, stressing
that he would do everything to ensure it does not
happen.
